


Playing Hookie

by tarnishedpeonies



Series: Bumblebee Week [2]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Animated (2007)
Genre: Gen, Sometimes Optimus Makes Poor Management Choices
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:35:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29159766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tarnishedpeonies/pseuds/tarnishedpeonies
Summary: Bumblebee hates monitor duty. Until Optimus leaves the room.
Series: Bumblebee Week [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2139120
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	Playing Hookie

Bee stared helplessly at the monitor while Optimus droned behind him. Decepticon signals, irregularities in the atmosphere, bla bla bla. Why didn’t he have _Prowl_ on monitor duty? That mech could hold still for hours! Bee is a scout, a racer, a mover-abouter! He didn’t belong here staring at a monitoring station, he belonged outside, looking for actual Decepticons! Then reporting back to Optimus with what he found. Ideally, anyways.

Today Bee had drawn the ‘short straw’ and was stuck on duty. Stuck on _monitor_ duty. Ugh, even thinking it hurt. Oop. Optimus had stopped talking. Bee didn’t know for how long, but he turned around and tuned back in to hear, “Are you even listening to me?” Well that was an important question to answer!

“Yes, sir! I sure am. Keep an optic out for Decepticon signals and any atmospheric irregularities.”

“ _And?_ ”

Uh oh. Uh. Hm. What did big, important mechs usually want him to say in situations like this? “And…let you know if I find anything?”

For a moment Bee couldn’t tell if that was the right answer. Then the corners of Optimus’ lips curled a little and he nodded. “Thank you, Bee. I know this isn’t your preferred duty station,” as if there was one, “but you’re needed here right now.” Optimus dismissed himself after that inspirational speech, and Bee could only stare until he disappeared. Looking back at the monitors, Bee sighed and shook his head. Sometimes he wondered about Optimus. He had his helmet so deep into _duty_ that he never seemed to enjoy himself. Unless _duty_ was what he enjoyed. Could someone like that exist?

“Pssst.” Bee’s head reared back as he looked around, finally finding the source of the noise just under the monitoring console as Sari waved up at him. “Hey! There you are! I’ve been looking for you all over,” she grinned, walking forward to start climbing up to optic level. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh. Monitor duty,” he sighed, watching Sari stand on the console as he cupped his chin miserably. “What are you doing here?”

Her eyes rolled. “ _Duh_ , remember you said you were going to watch _Xtreme Elimination Kombat_ with me?” She turned and stared pushing buttons on the console, and before Bee could stop her the feed came up on a central monitor. “So let’s watch it!”

“Wait! I’m supposed to be on duty,” Bee protested, because he should. He should, right? He was supposed to be looking for Decepticon irregularities and atmospheric signals? But the show Sari had put on the screen did look like a lot of fun.

“You _are_ monitoring, look! See, that’s the monitor, and we’re monitoring what’s on it! Besides, you didn’t change the channel, I did,” she points out. “So if there’s a problem, Optimus can yell at me instead of you.”

Bee wasn’t convinced, but when one of the contestants boffed another off a moving platform with a padded stick, he giggled. Sari grinned and he knew it was over. “All right, all right. But only one episode,” he reasoned, trying to be responsible about it! “I doubt we’d miss any irregular atmospheric Decepticons in that time anyways.” Bee settled in to laugh with Sari through just one - okay, maybe two, episodes of further ridiculous fighting stunts.

**Author's Note:**

> Optimus did _not_ , in fact, yell at Sari. Boy did he yell, though.


End file.
